Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Reasons Jo Harvelle Rocked

Today's post is an actual post because I have some updating to do. It's been a while since I had a new look and I'm going back to Supernatural because I love them Winchesters. I'm not too happy with the color scheme but I was trying to get it to go with the header. Enough babble, I want to talk about Jo Harvelle from Supernatural and why her character was one of my favorites.

My reasons won't be some straight forward list but more of a recap of things Jo did on Supernatural and how I think it reflects her character, but also what I liked about it.

I know many fans weren't too happy when Jo and Ellen Harvelle showed up at the beginning of season two especially when Jo was sort of written as a love interest to Dean. If there is one thing fans want is the Winchester boys free of relationships. That may dictate their own fantasies that apply but I would be getting off-topic. I could save that discussion for a later entry. I, myself, was not keen with the match-up. Just watching Dean hit on her seemed inappropriate considering she looked 16 and Dean was almost 30 at that point. But age is just a number and the tiny display at the bar was redeemed when Dean decided that Jo wasn't the right girl to try to sleep with at the time (and basically every time up until her death on the series...).

Instead of a romance between them it was more of a playful brother-sister role that developed probably because the writers knew fans' reactions and decided they better change it. It was a smarter decision on there part because it makes more sense. Dean can be a little "tasteless" at times, but Jo had a direct relation to hunting and to his father which meant Dean had more of an emotional dynamic with her. The hunting part made the two of them working a job interesting, it would have been cool to see her interact more with Dean and Sam's work but that ended up being a role for Ellen instead of Jo. The two could relate on a level that was a rarity; they grew up with the hunt and both of their fathers were killed by demons. From those factors you would think these two would have made an interesting couple, but it's not like Supernatural to promote love positively other than in a familial way.

So why does Jo Harvelle rock?

She's one of the only females on the show that has not been evil/bad. She wasn't even possessed or making bad mistakes. She was one of the most level headed albeit naive characters on the show, but an actual strong female character in male dominant show. She punched Dean in his face and didn't even flinch which you can't help but love. She saved Dean from the hellhounds and gave her life for the sake of saving the world. She wasn't afraid to tell things like they were and she could probably beat you in pool and poker.

Jo Harvelle is the type of female character I love to see in television. She was strong but ultimately had weaknesses (one of them being Dean!) but she didn't let them phase her. You just can't let anything in when you are a hunter because you can't have trust among anyone. But then again, maybe that's the weakness?